I was walking through the mall when a guy stopped me and asked me if I wanted to participate in a study and earn $5.00. I'd been to the book store and nothing else in the mall was very interesting. He was very flirty, which made me feel both awkward and flattered. I know guys sometimes find me attractive, but I am the ultimate nerd. I've never been with a guy and am really not that interested. I was broke and bored though, so I said yes.
I was led down a hallway into a small room. There was a different guy there. He offered a choice of sodas and they had some cookies. I was happy to take a diet coke. The glass was full of ice, as well as the soda and it tasted a bit funny at first. I filled out a short survey that asked me some basic questions, like my age, gender, relationship status, that kind of thing. Then I was asked to watch a video. I can't remember a lot about it. It was about make-up and clothes and things like that. I was sort of amused at first, because I am so not into that stuff. But there was something compelling about the video. The graphics were amazing, with these swirling transitions between segments. I shouldn't have been interested, but I was mesmerized. It felt like the video ended way too soon but it also felt like I'd been watching forever.
I was then asked to fill out another survey. This one asked about products I'd used in the past and if I was interested in trying anything different now that I'd seen the video. I was surprised by my answers. I still wasn't into make-up but some of the cute, more revealing blouses and some of the hair styles were really interesting. While I was filling out the survey, the guy offered me another diet coke. I realized I was super thirsty and said yes.
He asked me to wait a moment while he fed my survey results into the computer. He started flirting with me too. I couldn't believe I was getting hit on again. Normally my bookish, sloppy way of dressing discouraged guys. I know I was blushing but I didn't really mind. He was cute. He commented on the fact I'd finished my diet coke and offered me another. I hadn't even noticed I'd drunk it all, but another one sounded really good. I told the guy all these diet cokes were going to make me pee like crazy later and immediately blushed more. Why did I tell him that?
The computer pinged and he took a look at it. He said that I fit a special, limited criterion, and if I wanted, I could watch another video and earn $20.00. This video was 30 minutes. It was my day off, which is why I was wandering around the mall even though I had no money. The video had been interesting and getting money was great so I said yes. I have to admit, I was also oddly interested in watching. I wondered if it would be as compelling as the last one.